Percy Vaughan will be missed by all at the mart

28 Aug 2012

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As I look at the calendar this morning I note that August is almost over; the schools are reopening and the person in charge of the weather up there forgot to give us a summer. As I write the rain is pouring down outside and farmers who have a lot of harvesting to do are becoming even more worried.

As I look at the calendar this morning I note that August is almost over; the schools are reopening and the person in charge of the weather up there forgot to give us a summer. As I write the rain is pouring down outside and farmers who have a lot of harvesting to do are becoming even more worried.

There is a hint that from Thursday of this week we may get 3 or 4 fine days in a row fingers crossed this will happen but as I have written in my previous articles we need a month of dry weather for farmers to salvage some fodder for this winter.

The price of plain cattle has again seen a slippage but its good to see that quality animals are holding steady .Factory prices are still disappointing when we compare what our near neighbours in North of Ireland and mainland UK are been offered. It is high time that the relationship between factories and the producer improved for the benefit of both parties .At the moment it appears that the slip in prices is due to the awful weather as factories realise that many farmers have no alternative but to sell stock due to lack of feed and space .If we are to develop a relationship going forward for both factories and producers a fair price must be paid. Guess work has to be eliminated for all concerned.

The sheep trade has remained stable which is to be welcomed but there are moves to reduce prices.It is possible that with the strength of sterling our main market France will be more favourable for the Irish producer rather than our UK counterparts. The breeding season is in full swing but as opposed to last year many hoggets can be purchased from €140 to €160 with a few exceptional lots reaching a high of €180 with this price been the exception rather than the rule .Next Monday we have our first multi breed ram sale with the following week been taken up by Charolais Rams.

On a personal level last week was a particularly sad one with the death of two people called from this world long before one would expect. Every week at Kilkenny Mart we could have anything from 300 to 1,000 people attending the sales between buyers, sellers and onlookers so one gets to know lots of people associated with the agricultural world. One of these people who bought and sold cattle for many farmers and brought hundreds of cattle per year into Kilkenny Mart was Percy Vaughan of Mullinahone.Percy died suddenly last Thursday and the shock generated by this tragedy reverberated around the mart and cast a cloud over the entire days trading .He was ever present on cattle sale days and was a person who offered a great service to many farmers one could say he went on and beyond the call of duty.

Kilkenny Mart will be a duller place due to his loss. To his wife Peggy son Peter, Anne and the extended Vaughan family we offer our sincere sympathy. I will miss our regular chats on a Wednesday and the sad thing is this proud Kilkenny man will not be in Croke Park on the 9th September though perhaps from his vantage point above he will have a better view than any of us. May he rest in peace.

Another sad and sudden death was Jonathan Hoyne from Thomastown who died last week in his early 20s this event caused heartbreak to his entire family and we can only hope and pray that the pain generated by this awful loss will ease in time .Both these events leave more questions than answers.Life can be very cruel at times.

Until next week be kind to each other and good buying, good selling and good luck.

Cattle

600 kg + €500 to €930 over kg. €1.72 to €2.44 per kg

No. Breed Wt. €/kg Price(€)

2 Lim 770 €2.21 €1,700

1 Char 675 €2.44 €1,650

1 Fr 710 €1.99 €1,410

11 Fr 607 €1.85 €1,125

500 - 600 kg €280 to €780 over kg. €1.55 to €2.46 per kg

No. Breed Wt. €/kg Price(€)

1 Sim 590 €2.32 1,370

1 Lim 520 €2.46 1,280

2 Fr 570 €1.93 1,100

1 Fr 500 €1.92 960

400 - 500 kg €240 to €25 over kg. €1.50 to €2.77 over

No. Breed Wt. €/kg Price(€)

2 Char 465 €2.77 €1,290

5 Char 458 €2.29 €1,050

2 Fr 405 €2.25 €910

2 Fr 465 €1.69 €785

<400 kg €150 to €€657 over kg. €1.12 to €2.67 per kg

No. Breed Wt. €/kg Price(€)

3 Lim 393 €2.67 €1,050

1 Char 330 €2.97 €980

2 Lim 370 €1.81 €670

1 Fr 360 €1.17 €420

Cull Cows - Fr €1.05 to €1.69 per kilo; Cont €1.67 to €2.05 per kilo;

Beef Heifers €300 to €800 over kg. €1.70 to €2.43 per kg

No. Breed Wt. €/kg Price(€)

1 Char 580 €2.38 €1,380

2 Char 532 €2.43 €1,295

1 Her 550 €1.85 €1,020

1 AA 530 €1.82 €965

Butcher Heifers €420 to €630 over the kilo €1.85 to €2.30 per kilo

No. Breed Wt. Price(€)

2 Lim 450 €2.40 1,080

1 Lim 460 €2.21 1,015

1 Herf 490 €1.88 920

1 BB 450 €2.02 910

Store Heifers €250 to €470 over the kilo €1.75 to €2.10 per kilo

No. Breed Wt. €/kg Price(€)

1 Lim 370 €2.07 €765

8 char 365 €2.00 €730

1 AA 390 €1.63 €635

2 AA 395 €1.84 €725

Sucklers - Cows with calves at foot €1200 to €1350 per unit; in-calf Cows and heifers €900 to €950 per head.

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